Washington, D.C.

To: Interested Parties
Fr: White House Communications
Da: April 22, 2009
Re: The Obama-Biden economic plan: creating jobs, strengthening the economy for D.C. families

Facing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, President Obama started his Presidency with decisive action -- proposing and quickly passing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Since the bill went into effect, the ARRA has already helped put money back in the pockets of 95 percent of working Americans, created and saved jobs across the country and made key investments in our community to help kickstart the economy. To ensure that the funds are spent efficiently and effectively, President Obama tasked Vice President Biden with overseeing the implementation of ARRA, and projects have already begun to come in under budget across the country. As the President prepares to introduce the details of his budget and further plans to revitalize the economy, here’s a look at how his policies have impacted Washington, D.C. in the first three months of his administration.

IMPACT OF PRESIDENT OBAMA’S ECONOMIC POLICIES ON D.C.

Working Families:

  • Making Work Pay: The President’s tax-cut – which covers more Americans than any in history – is putting more than $100 million back in the pockets of more than 200,000 hard-working Alabama families.
  • $2,685,517 to support child care for working families.

Energy:

  • $9,593,500 in block grants to foster energy efficiency in building, transportation, and a wide range of other improvements.
  • $8,089,022 to support the weatherization of homes, including adding more insulation, sealing leaks and modernizing heating and air conditioning equipment.
  • $22,022,000 to the State Energy Program, available for rebates to consumers for energy saving improvements; development of renewable energy projects; promotion of Energy Star products; efficiency upgrades for state and local government buildings; and other innovative state efforts to help save families money on their energy bills.

Education:

  • $164,626,294 dollars potentially available to Washington, D.C. to lay the foundation for a generation of education reform and help save thousands of teaching jobs at risk due to state and local budget cuts.

Health Care:

  • $1,731,651 to expand services at 5 existing Community Health Centers, which will expand service to an additional 8,370 patients and create or save a projected 28 jobs.
  • $485,000 to provide meals to low-income seniors.
  • $1,157,671 to provide meals to low-income seniors.
  • $58,882,030 made available in Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) to protect health care for the families hit hard by the economic crisis and some of the nation’s most vulnerable citizens.
  • $346,711 in vaccines and grants to ensure more underserved Americans receive the vaccines they need.

Transportation:

  • $123,507,842 in highway funds to help build and repair roads and bridges.
  • $124,914,899 to repair and build public transportation infrastructure.

Law Enforcement:

  • More than $11.7 million for state and local law enforcement assistance available through the Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. The JAG Program supports a variety of efforts such as hiring and support for law enforcement officers; multijurisdictional drug and gang task forces; crime prevention and domestic violence programs; and courts, corrections, treatment, and justice information sharing initiatives.

REAL RESULTS IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

Thanks to the Obama Administration’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, real impact is already being felt across D.C.

Stimulus Funding For New DHS Headquarters Building In Anacostia Expected To Help Create 38,000 Jobs. "Almost one-third of the money needed to build a massive new headquarters for the Department of Homeland Security at the St. Elizabeths Hospital campus in Anacostia has been secured, courtesy of the federal stimulus package and a new spending bill to fund the government for the rest of the fiscal year. Congressional Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C., says $450 million of the stimulus act’s money for federal building projects will go toward the 3.8 million-square-foot DHS complex on the west campus of St. Elizabeths, the biggest boost to date for the $3.4 billion project. The spending bill signed by President Barack Obama March 10 contains $331 million specifically for the first phase of the new DHS headquarters. "The DHS money for the first of five DHS buildings comes just in time to help us staunch rapidly rising unemployment rate in the District with jobs," Norton said in a statement. She expects construction of the first building, pegged for the southwest corner of the site, to create 38,000 jobs." [Washington Business Journal, 3/20/09]

Interior Secretary Announced Stimulus Funding Would Repair DC Memorials. "Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Wednesday that $750 million in stimulus money will go to restore and repair national parks nationwide, including about $55.8 million for the National Mall. About $30 million will go to fix the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, $18 million to repair a Jefferson Memorial sea wall and $7.3 million to restore the District of Columbia War Memorial." [AP, 4/22/09]

Federal Building Projects In DC To Receive $1.2 Billion In Stimulus Funding. "The biggest share of stimulus money to repair, retrofit and create federal buildings will stay right here in the local economy, according to a General Service Administration plan released yesterday. District projects will get slightly more than $1.2 billion, said Mike McGill, a regional spokesman for the GSA. That's more than one-fifth of the $5.5 billion the GSA received in stimulus money for construction projects from the Canadian border crossing at Madawaska, Maine, to the Prince Kuhio Federal Building in Honolulu, according to the GSA list. The funding does not appear out of line with the District's share of the 358 million square feet of GSA-managed building space. A little more than one-quarter of the total, 96 million square feet, is in the District, McGill said. The largest chunk of GSA stimulus money will go toward the biggest project the agency has ever undertaken, the conversion of part of the St. Elizabeths Hospital campus in Southeast Washington into headquarters for the Department of Homeland Security, McGill said. Many of the Washington projects involve ‘green building’ modernization, security measures or general repair. More than 70 of the GSA-run buildings in the District are older, historic structures that are on the National Register of Historic Places, McGill said." [Washington Post, 4/2/09]

Architect Group Praised Funding For Local Projects. "The GSA plan is good news for the region's building industry, especially architects, who have been hit hard by the recession, said Andrew L. Goldberg, a senior director at the American Institute of Architects. The infusion is so big that it will present new opportunities for firms and professional workers not already involved in government projects. ‘Because it is so much work in such a short period of time, they are going to be pursuing a lot of talent,’ Goldberg said." [Washington Post, 4/2/09]

DC Set To Receive $94.5 Million For HUD Funding From Stimulus. "The District of Columbia will receive $94.5 million thus far from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. HUD awarded more than $10 billion or 75 percent of a total $13.6 billion to states and cities across the country, including the District, to fund programs including foreclosure prevention and mitigation; homelessness prevention; community development; affordable housing; and lead hazard prevention.The remaining 25 percent of recovery funds, which will be competitively awarded later, will be used to build on the Obama Administration’s priorities to promote green jobs and mitigate the destabilizing effects of foreclosures on communities." [District of Columbia Press Release, 3/12/09]

 

Real Estate Giant Predicted DC Area Would Benefit The Most From Stimulus Bill. "Cassidy & Pinkard Colliers today announced that no region is likely to benefit more from the spending of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which was signed into law on February 17, 2009, than the Washington, DC metropolitan area. The $787 billion fiscal stimulus plan will result in billions of dollars channeled to Federal agencies and local contractors to help manage the various spending programs. Although the funds will be disseminated throughout the country, the District stands to benefit the most from the stimulus bill as it is home to the majority of Federal agencies in the region. Of the 27 Federal agencies most likely to be impacted by the stimulus package, 23 are located in the District, 2 are in Maryland, and 2 are in Northern Virginia. Kevin Thorpe, Cassidy & Pinkard Colliers’ Vice President and Director of Research, commented, ‘For every $1 billion in federal procurement spending in the DC region, 7,000 new jobs are typically created. If you consider the billions flowing into DC, not only from the stimulus bill, but from the financial rescue proposal and the increase in Federal regulation, the labor market could be shifting upwards to a higher platform.’ Mr. Thorpe added, ‘It will not happen overnight, however. The meaningful job creation is not likely to kick in until 2010 or 2011.’" [Colliers Press Release, 3/10/09]